Kittel earned the designation by attending a specific, intensive series of a minimum of 90 hours of classroom instruction, covering a variety of subjects including contract law, professional standards, sales and marketing, finance, and risk reduction.

In addition, GRI graduates have learned the fundamentals of brokerage and other areas of real estate specialization. With this designation and through increased awareness of current topics important to the real estate professional, such as legal issues, these realtors can better serve prospective clients and customers.

The Realtor Institute is designed to educate practitioners about local, state and national real estate practices that affect them, their clients and customers. The Institute is taught by leading real estate professionals from around the country.

The GRI designation sets the individuals who have attained it apart from other practitioners and indicates to the public the individual has obtained a professional educational foundation on which to base the services they provide and they are a member of the National Association of Realtors.

Contact Kittel at Windermere West Coast Properties: 265-5455 or 270-3422.

The real estate associates and staff from Windermere who volunteered on Community Service Day include, from left, Sandra Kittel.

As part of their long-standing tradition of giving back to the community, the real estate associates and staff from Windermere/West Coast Properties dedicated Friday, June 24, the company's annual Community Service Day, to a local senior citizen in need of assistance with yard and home maintenance.

The Windermere associates and staff spent the day tackling a variety of projects for Arnold Wayne Pearson, a disabled World War II veteran. The Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), an organization that matches up volunteers with senior citizens in need of assistance, helped the Windermere team coordinate their Community Service Day project. First American Title in Newport provided breakfast for the crew before their day of work began and Dahl Disposal in Toledo took all of the clippings from Pearson's property at no charge.

The volunteers from Windermere/West Coast Properties were among more than 7,000 Windermere agents and staff throughout the West who are participating in Community Service Day in June. Since the company's annual volunteer effort began in 1984, Windermere associates have donated more than 400,000 hours to worthy projects in the communities in which they live and work.

Windermere's Community Service Day is just one example of the company's commitment to helping their neighbors in need. In addition to this annual volunteer effort, the company has a heritage of serving communities through the Windermere Foundation. Every time a Windermere associate completes a real estate transaction, a portion of the commission is donated to the Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The funds are then distributed back to homeless assistance programs within each office's community. Since 1989, the Windermere Foundation has raised more than $12 million.